m15a

thanks for all the replies. i started this thread as mostly a hypothetical question (that is, not because i wanted to find a pair of headphones). but then i realized that this is actually pretty useful. i checked out some of the headphones mentioned, and i personally like them and would consider them. but really something along the lines of the triport would be perfect for my girlfriend. if they were only affordable. in addition to the criteria i listed, other important criteria for her that i believe are present in the triports are they're: - circumaural - have pretty good passive noise reduction (closed) maybe i missed some, but i think most of those recommended don't fit those criteria as well.

i've read, and i think taken part in a couple of those conversations. i did some research regarding the auditory system (creating a computer model of the human auditory system), so i get the basic idea. but the difference is why i want to try it out. kinda want to experience all first hand for myself. trust me, i'll experiment with various other mic positionings. (well, maybe you shouldn't trust me. sometimes i get lazy . . . ) thanks, though. luckily (or unluckily), i wear prescription glasses. also, even for outside the ear recording, using headphones might be a good stealth trick, although i could see them getting in the way, too. anyway, hopefully soundprofessionals will be quick about sending me the clips they forgot to ship me and i'll get to try something this weekend or next.

i just ordered the mz-m100 bundle from soundprofessionals. wanted to mention, first, that i've experienced good service from them. (although you'll save some trouble if your billing and shipping address are the same . . and make sure the phone number you use with your credit card is what you give soundprofessionals.) also, i didn't realize until after i ordered, but they have a point system, which basically comes up to something like $10 off your next order for a $300 order.

i've heard a few times that the bose triport cost triple what it's worth. that is, it's worth $50 when it costs $150. now, i don't own the triport headphones, and i'm not the type to spend $150 for any type of portable headphones. but if it *was* $50 . . so, anyway, i wanted to hear what people thought of as alternatives to the triport at around $50. of course, it doesn't have to have the "benefit" of having the bose name, but i think the positive features of the headphones are: - very light and comfortable over-ear headphones - relatively portable and small - fairly good sound i understand a big negative is the fragility of the things, so maybe a better question would be what are alternatives that are more than $50, but without the downside of being fragile, while still having the benefit of being so comfortable. note that i'm not posting this to attack people that make such claims. i'm really curious what the alternatives are for small and very comfortable headphones with pretty good sound. also, i know there are some good general guides for good headphones to get, but i think this question is more specific.

thanks for the advice, guys. i'm definitely looking forward to trying a lot of different methods, so i'll use your suggestions. although i still want to try mounting them actually in ear, also. altohugh i'm thinking i might use a cheap set of headphones (like, the type that go over your ear) to cover up the mics (and maybe for better support), rather than putting the mics inside the headphones.

i just got an sound professionals sp-bmc-2 mic (in addition to an mz-m100, the sony mic, headphones, etc.). first off, let me just say that that first personal binaural experience is amazing. i stepped into the bedroom to get away from the computer noise and test the mic out. i tried putting the in my ears (just that bottom part, not the canal). and during the recording, my girlfriend in the living room called out to me. then i listened to the recording. as you could guess, when i heard her call out in the recording, i thought she was calling out again. i listened to the recording again, and i was *still* almost fooled. then i had my girlfriend listen to the recording and she was totally freaked out, too. anyhow, i'm impressed enough to really want to be able to mount them in my ears for recording in public (new york city streets, you know . .). anyhow, i was thinking that it shouldn't be impossible to just take a cheap set of in ear earphones, break out the speakers, and insert the mics. tough part, of course, being that most earphones aren't meant to be broken. so, i was wondering if anyone had tried anything like this with any success? i got the sp-bmc-2 rather than the earphone mounted version so i had some versatility. so, of course, i don't want to permanently mount them. but a construction with lots of electrical tape is plausible. also, protecting the mics in public is important, too. any tips on that? thanks, all. and thanks for the months of reading i've enjoyed on these boards that *finally* lead me to buying the equipment.

now, *my* question is, how much money do you all make!?!? i feel guilty buying anything over $100 unless it's really important to me. i just feel like at some point i'll need the money for something better . . .

ah. i see. sorry. didn't see that feature of your instructions. thanks for the tip, though. i'll probably use open-append for other purposes, too. (now that i know what it means.)

gapless is good news! didn't realize, but now i'm even more pleased i bought a hi-md. thanks for the guide. if i'm reading correctly, sounds like this can be done in audacity, which is a free wave editor. in case people are worried that they don't have that program. actually, if you have the skillz, you could probably pull it off in windows sound recorder.

from my experience with mp3 players, i'd agree that navigation is an important feature. although knowing that there are 6 lines vs. 1 or whatever doesn't tell you how natural the navigation is. you'd probably need a good review of each model for that. um . . the original poster didn't really ask for that, but regarding this argument, i know i'd find opinions like, "i found it tough to navigate through albums on the rh1," to be more helpful. downside of that being that people navigate through their players in different ways and find different methods to be easy or difficult.

mp3 on an MD has gaps while atrac is gapless? i'll be confronting the same issue in a few weeks, perhaps. theoretically speaking, converting from mp3 to atrac (or another lossy format) will result in a lower quality file, though. i guess the question is if that degradation is worse than the "EQ" issue.

this isn't exclusive to minidisc. it can happen with any product which people really care about that comes in some variety. (cars, computers, etc.) i've never been too caught up in this because i'm very frugal . . cheap, really.* you should check out some keyboarding or guitar forums, though. i'm sure your MD addiction is nothing compared to what some people have with that stuff. the cure is to try to be rational and realize that the product you have most likely has 95% of the capability and enjoyment you'd get from the "new model". * omg, i just checked out my registration date for minidisc.org. i signed up for the site 11 months ago and i *just* purchased my first unit. heh. so i guess there's an opposite side of the spectrum that is sometimes as bad.

also, if it comes up, the mz-m100 is similar to the mz-rh10, but has mac compatibility (the rh10 does not). just thought i'd throw that out there.

howe much? (i'm in the new york area, btw. EDIT: oh shoot. you're in the u.k., right?)

but you can't get those shipped to the u.s., can you? i saw that a couple days ago, and i only saw options for australia and new zealand. which was why i didn't end up taking advantage of this deal months ago . .

personally, i'm open to getting a 1st generation, too. i just didn't expect 1st gen prices to fall due to the third generation. and 2nd generation is easier to find in the u.s., right? anyway, i'm just looking for a "hot deal" to take advantage of. for me, that comes down to the cheapest i can find any hi-md recorder for.

thanks for the input. it's surprising how much the prices seem to fluctuate. i'll definitely keep an eye out, though . .

hi, all. been visiting the board from time to time, but haven't given in and bought a hi-md recorder yet. (almost did with the australia clearance deal but hesitated and in all the confusion, didn't get a chance.) the rh-1 at $300US is too expensive for my needs. so i was hoping that the release would at least lead to some discounts on 2nd gen recorders. anyone have any educated guesses as to how the prices will change over the coming months? (for the 2nd gen or maybe for the rh1 if you think deals will sprout up for that, too.) anyone see any change in price already? thanks!

good lead. shipping seems low, too. no nh1s, though? or am i just blind?

only thing is the purchase would have been an impulse buy. now i have to think and think about it . . .

that's a really good "real life" shot of the nh1. i'm getting interested again . . .

got this response from the website: We are still working on it. It has been delayed due to the Xmas rush and I haven't had much time do look at it ... so still hope. if the shipping gets dropped down, i might still get one. (assuming it's not already sold out, of course.)

. . . ? still no word? is it time to give up?

hope i'm making the right choice by posting in this thread rather than making a new one. anyway, i too would like to explore the alternatives. (unless that australian super deal starts shipping to the u.s. again.) anyway, seems like no one can really give a clear opinion without knowing some specifics, so i'll give my specific needs. i was thinking of getting a hi-md for recording, but haven't been able to justify the price. i'd be using it for environmental recordings. stealth to the level that i don't want people on the street/subway knowing what i'm doing, but not to the level that concert recorders need. right now, this is just experimentation for my music writing and non-musical enjoyment. so, i can live with it being a little bulky (like men's winter coat pocket bulky). i still want it to be fairly simple to record, and want pcm 44.1kHz/16-bit or better quality. *however*, i've just started to get annoyed with my 5 gb limitation on my mp3 player *and* my gf has been bugging me to help her obtain an mp3 player. (my 5 gb has no acceptable recording capabilities, btw.) so i'm thinking about getting a 20+ gb player for myself. and it'd be nice if it has recording potential, too. for $170, i could get the Creative Zen Touch 20 GB MP3 Player. i'm willing to go higher for recording capabilities, but not over $300 unless i end up with really nice features for both recording and portable listening. (that's not including mics, but including preamp if required.) are there any possibilities? am i right in thinking that there's nothing available that doesn't require an external preamp for what i want? the iriver ihp-20 was recommended, but i can't find it available new from anywhere reputable. i'd prefer to avoid the ebay risks. i'd really only consider getting a used from something like meeting up with someone i know from a forum or maybe craigslist so i can test out the model. so, those are my needs. anyone have any suggestions? or should i just convince my gf that she wants a hi-md and then borrow it when i want to record? thanks a bunch!

aw, man . . well, good luck, sefu. and thanks for all the work!